


Left in Yesterday

by Lilylloid



Category: Dragon Quest Series, Dragon Quest VII
Genre: Angst, Gen, Grief, Hero is named Seven, Major Spoilers, Sad, Spoilers, also, because it's a thing, i think, like mega major ones, saying goodbye
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-04
Updated: 2019-05-04
Packaged: 2020-02-18 12:27:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,494
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18699607
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lilylloid/pseuds/Lilylloid
Summary: The one where Seven gets to actually grieve for the loss of his best friend.





	Left in Yesterday

**Author's Note:**

> I was salty that we got no reaction from Seven, his actual best friend, and I couldn't get properly sad about Kiefer because of that, so I took it upon myself to make Seven suffer and to make myself sad lol

It was a beautiful day out.  
Even from his spot at the edge of the bridge looking down at the tablets, all the way inside the old temple, Seven could hear the enthusiastic sounds of the gulls, almost feel the gentle breeze caress the bushes and the leaves of the trees. He could feel the gentle swaying of the water as clear as if it were rushing over his own skin.

It was a beautiful day for sailing. He knew his friends would be running to get him in any moment, so they could visit the new isle they had brought back from the darkness during their last trip in the past. He knew everyone in Pilchard Bay and Estard city expected them to come back with stories of the new land, to wash away the sad reality of their lost prince.

And Seven dreaded going there.  
Dreaded the idea of putting his feet in the new yet familiar island, looking at every nook and corner of it, only to confirm what he already knew; that his friend wouldn’t be there.  
That he’d stayed, and that he wouldn’t come back.  
That his future was now long since past.

So, he sat there, in the place that had seen the beginning of their journey. The place where he and his friend had set the wheel back in motion, in search of adventures. The place that now would forever remind him of the friend that no longer stood beside him. He sat and thought back to every single moment that lead to that instant, waiting for when Maribel and Ruff would inevitably come to get him. But when his thoughts started to weight too much on his mind, he decided to go to them instead.

The strange purple fairy, who had been eying him ever since he showed up shortly after dawn, startled at the sound of his footsteps. He mumbled a “sorry” as he passed by them, though the fairy didn’t pay him no mind, already back to staring blankly ahead.

He crossed the bridge, the clicking of his boots echoing through the hollow temple, and the sound felt so foreign he found himself missing the usual laughter and mindless chatter that usually accompanied him after a successful mission or as they prepared to visit a new land.  
He quickened his pace, suddenly desperate for the feeling of normalcy and opened the door to the outside.

His eyes took a moment to adjust to the light of the sun and when his vision cleared, he found his friends standing by the old deity’s statue. At the sound of his footsteps, Ruff perked up which seemed to alert Maribel, who welcomed him with a scowl.

“Took you long enough, Seven!”, she grouched as soon as he was in hearing distance, “did you sneak in to get more sleep, you lazy bum?”.

Though her words were reprimanding, her eyes betrayed some of her worry.  
He felt a smile tug at the corner of his lips as he prepared to answer, but Ruff beat him to the punch.

“He’s a growing boy! Silvestre says growing children need a lot of food and sleep too!”, he chirped, proud of having remembered what his guardian told him.

Maribel’s expression softened as she angled her head towards the little boy, “it’s true enough for you Ruff, but he”, she turned her glare to Seven again, ”is grown enough to know not to oversleep!”

Comforted by the familiar atmosphere, he stepped ahead, which he knew only served to aggravate her further, and stopped a few steps ahead.

“I thought you said I could use a few more centimeters”, he said over his shoulder, before continuing on his way.

He didn’t stay to hear her reaction, but he had a feeling that had effectively shut her up. 

Seven smiled to himself as he glanced at the clear blue sky.  
It was a beautiful day out, a perfect day for sailing.

 

Wind breezed by the empty clearing making the leaves rustle and some strands of his hair fall on his eyes. He didn’t bother brushing them back. His eyes were fixed on the horizon, where the sun was spilling its last rays over the world.

Behind him, Maribel was keeping company to Ruff, who was oohing at the marvelous view. The boy couldn’t read just yet and his innocence left him blessedly unaware of the heaviness of the atmosphere. A few paces back, stood the proof of his friend’s departure for good. 

His letter had said “Till we meet again, maybe” and that maybe had let hope sprout in him. Let him believe there was a chance for them to see each other again. Maybe even get to fight side by side again.

When they had finally set sail, he braced for the possibility of not finding any trace of his friend in the island. Ready to leave with the hope of his friend still being somewhere out there. Nothing could have prepared him for what he found there.

The grave stood lonely at the edge of the clearing. 

A single stone shouldn’t hold this much power, Seven thought as he desperately tried to hold back his tears. And yet there it stood, a physical proof that his friend was no more. That he was truly gone, that he’d never get to see him again.

“Here lies the one who danced for the Allmighty and her beloved guardian”.

Maribel had sounded forlorn, her tone unusually soft as she asked him if he knew what it meant. He hadn’t said anything, just stepped back and moved over to the edge.  
He felt her gaze on him, but he didn’t turn around. He knew he was being a little unfair on her, Kiefer had been her friend as well, despite how much they both liked to deny it, but he couldn't bring himself to care.

She had turned her attention to Ruff and he knew she’d changed the subject when the young wolf’s clear laughter rang through the clearing.  
Somehow, that made his heart ache even more. But no tears were allowed to spill, not yet.

 

That night, he teleported back to the clearing, Kiefer’s favorite beverage in hand -provided by the maid who had watched him grow- and sat by his best friend’s grave. It hurt him to accept it, but as he read the words over and over again until tears blurred his vision, he understood there was no point denying it.  
He uncapped the bottle and sipped at the herbal tea that was too bitter for his liking as he talked to his friend. For just that one night, he wanted to pretend he was right there again, in front of him. He knew that when the sun rose, he’d have to stand back up and keep going forward, without him.

And so, he talked. About the first time they met on the ruins near Estard, when a six-year-old Kiefer had snuck out of the castle looking for adventure. How they’d set to explore every nook of the isle, giving no regards to the rules. How they’d made up a secret language and started coding messages using rocks, so they could sneak out even when grounded.  
He talked of how they’d stumbled upon their boat and how hard they had worked in order to restore it. How proud they had been when it had finally been ready to set sail.  
How they stood at the beginning, that day, and opened the door to what he now realizes was the end.

Kiefer found his way, and he was sure that with time, he’d learn to be okay with it, but right then, he just missed his best friend.  
He had smiled when Kiefer asked him if he understood. He had nodded and clasped his friend’s hand one last time, because he did. He understood his friend’s need to find something that was solely his, but it didn’t mean he had to be okay with it. Didn’t mean it hurt any less, as he walked through the portal back to his time, leaving his best friend behind. Didn’t mean it hurt any less, as he sat facing the proof that he’d never get to see him again. Never get to stand back to back or fight side by side.

Kiefer may have had all his life ahead of him where they had left him, but one thing was clear, clearer then the glistening water he could see from the top of the clearing, Seven had lost all his time with him.  
And it hurt.

So he talked to his friend, told him everything he couldn’t when facing him that one last time. And his broken voice carried over the clearing, to where Maribel leaned against a tree, refusing to even acknowledge her own tears, even as she rubbed at the few stray droplets that fell down her cheeks.

Prince Kiefer would not be coming back.

**Author's Note:**

> I somehow always write angst everytime I post for the first time in a fandom. Why am I like this.  
> Anyway, thanks for reading and have a good day !


End file.
